Wits Art Museum

One of the largest collections of African art is tragically hidden in carefully controlled storerooms at Wits University – all because there is no gallery. This collection of 9 000 works of art has been built up over seven decades and spans the African continent and centuries of our history. A new home for this collection, the Wits Art Museum, will be built as part of an exciting capital campaign.

Architectural plans have been approved to renovate an existing Wits structure to create an accessible, state-of-the art museum at the corner of Jan Smuts Avenue and Jorissen Street in Braamfontein “where the university shakes hands with the city."  

The new museum will host a series of dynamic interactive curated displays that will engage different audiences in an exciting dialogue with artworks and artmaking. The museum will add incredible value to school learning areas of art and drama by offering input into development of school syllabi, supporting teaching through development of focussed materials and providing programmes for school learners through interacting with real art. The museum will enable university constituencies to access original artworks for core teaching activities and public interface. As part of the urban renewal of Johannesburg, the museum’s exciting exhibitions will attract the public and tourists to experience the joy of real African art for all.

Championed by Wits curators Julia Charlton and Fiona Rankin-Smith, the Wits Art Museum Project, with a total estimated budget of R39 million, has already generated much support. However, R19 million needs to be raised in order to start building in 2010.